Snow!

Oh so fun! We got around 4 inches this afternoon and evening!

Larry King Live on Autism and Vaccines

Autism & Vaccines

The debate is heating up again in the controversy surrounding vaccinations and whether or not they cause autism. CNN has an interesting video of Larry King interviewing several families and a pediatrician who have or work with autistic children.

I found this article posted on CNN's webpage:

March 6, 2008
Vaccines and autism
Posted: 12:01 PM ET

Some new news to share about autism today. At a press conference this morning, a Georgia family will describe how the government has conceded that a vaccine “contributed” to their daughter’s autism symptoms. The family will receive compensation from a federal vaccine court.

That doesn’t mean the federal government agrees that vaccines cause autism. Nor does this 9-year-old girl’s case mean the 4,900 other families in the vaccine court have won their claim that vaccines resulted in their children’s autism. That case continues.

Advocates who see a vaccine-autism link point to Hannah Poling’s case as a big victory for their cause - evidence of the potentially disastrous side effects of vaccines.

Within 48 hours after receiving her vaccinations, Hannah, then 19 months old and by all accounts a normal little girl, developed a high fever, inconsolable crying and some signs of regression, including difficulty walking and speaking.


Over the next several months, she had countless visits with doctors finally culminating in the diagnosis of encephalopathy with features of autism spectrum disorder. At the same time, and this is potentially very important, she had genetic testing and was found to have the gene for an underlying mitochondrial disorder.

So, did the vaccines worsen an already existing condition leading to the symptoms of autism? That is what the government seems to have conceded. And, if so, was it caused by the mercury preservative thimerosal, which was present in Hannah’s vaccines several years ago, or was it the profound immune response that vaccinations cause in the body?

The Centers for Diseases Control, American Academy of Pediatrics, Institute of Medicine and other prestigious medical organizations maintain there is no link between vaccines and autism.

As many experts have told me, this case is likely to raise more questions than it answers. But, these are good questions and important ones for anyone who cares about this issue. What do you think?

- Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Chief Medical Correspondent

Editor’s Note: Medical news is a popular but sensitive subject rooted in science. We receive many comments on this blog each day; not all are posted. Our hope is that much will be learned from the sharing of useful information and personal experiences based on the medical and health topics of the blog. We encourage you to focus your comments on those medical and health topics and we appreciate your input. Thank you for your participation.

Filed under: Dr. Sanjay Gupta • autism

Mama & Rémy in snow

SNOW DAY 021 2
Originally uploaded by dollye_plagge

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
by: Robert Frost

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of the easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark, and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

Papa & Rémy in snow

SNOW DAY 023 2
Originally uploaded by dollye_plagge

We waited all day for it to snow and finally it came! And it snowed, and snowed and snowed. We probably got between 2-3 inches here. It had melted by yesterday afternoon, but it was fun while it lasted!

Becki's Molasses Butter Balls

1 c. butter
1/4 c. packed brown sugar
1/4 c. molasses
2 1/4 c all purpose flour
2 c. finely chopped walnuts
1/2 c. powdered sugar

Beat butter in a large mixing bowl on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add brown sugar and molasses; beat 'til combined. Beat in flour. Stir in nuts.

Shape into 1 1/4 inch balls. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake in a 325' oven for 20 minutes or 'til set. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Place powdered sugar in a plastic bag. Add cookies, a few at a time, and shake gently 'til coated.

56 servings.

Stamps and Memories

This time about three years ago my mom and I were planning a wedding shower for Amy and Matt. I bought the invitations and mom purchased the pretty postage and mailed it to me so I could send the invites. A couple of weeks later we decided to postpone the shower a little until Amy felt better. It's so strange that such a small thing as a stamp can spark such a flood of emotions and memories. Those two 'books' of stamps followed us from our apartment in McKinney, to living in Ken & Debbe's guest house, to our home in Frisco where they have sat under my bathroom vanity sink for the past 2 years. A couple of months ago I put them in a place with the rest of our stamps for personal use, knowing that I could probably never bring myself to actually use them. Today as I was addressing and putting stamps on Rémy's birth announcements I ran out of regular stamps. I thought about going out and buying more, but then on second thought realized- what could be a better way to use those stamps than on Rémy's birth announcements. Such small ways that such a large life made an impact. In a couple of days you'll probably be receiving an announcement in the mail from us...not all of them have 'Amy's' stamps, but if you would just take a minute and remember her family and friends this month, as this time of year is always difficult. For those of you who don't know Amy or want to know more about her life you can read more at her brother Jonathan's website. And also read what her sister Kara says about Amy's life.

Clementine Cake

This recipe if from Nigella Lawson...I've read a couple of her cookbooks and I have loved every recipe I've made from her collection. I want to try this one soon, although I'm not sure if clementines are still in season.

4 to 5 clementines (about 1 pound total weight)
6 eggs
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
2 1/3 cups ground almonds
1 heaping teaspoon baking powder

Put the clementines in a pot with cold water to cover, bring to the boil, and cook for 2 hours. Drain and, when cool, cut each clementine in half and remove the seeds. Then finely chop the skins, pith, and fruit in the processor (or by hand, of course).

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Butter and line an 8-inch springform pan with parchment paper.

Beat the eggs. Add the sugar, almonds, and baking powder. Mix well, adding the chopped clementines. I don't like using the processor for this, and frankly, you can't balk at a little light stirring.

Pour the cake mixture into the prepared pan and bake for 1 hour, when a skewer will come out clean; you'll probably have to cover the cake with foil after about 40 minutes to stop the top from burning. Remove from the oven and leave to cool, in the pan on a rack. When the cake is cold, you can take it out of the pan. I think this is better a day after it's made, but I don't complain about eating it anytime.

I've also made this with an equal weight of oranges and lemons, in which case I increase the sugar to 1 1/4 cups and slightly Anglicize it, too, by adding a glaze made of confectioners' sugar mixed to a paste with lemon juice and a little water.

Dallas Museum of Art

is Free on Thursday evenings from 5-9:00 p.m. and the first Tuesday of each month. We bought a membership the first year we were married, but then decided it was a better use of our money to just pay when we go. (I think we only went once that year).

Dallas Museum of Art

Make Your Own Pizza Crust for Dinner Tonite

pizza dough:

1 teaspoon yeast
3 cups flour
2 teaspoons coarse salt
1 to 1 1/4 cups water
2 tablespoons olive oil

food processor:
combine yeast, flour, and salt in container of food processor. turn machine on and add 1 cup of water and 2 tablespoons of olive oil through the feed tube.
process about 30 seconds, adding more water a little at a time, until the mixture forms a ball and is slightly sticky. add water a tablespoon at a time if it is too dry.
turn dough onto floured work surface and knead by hand a few seconds to form a smooth dough ball. grease a bowl with olive oil and cover with plastic wrap or damp cloth and let rise 1 to 2 hours.
by hand:
combine half the flour with the salt and yeast and stir to blend. Add 1 cup water and 2 tablespoons olive oil; stir with a wooden spoon until smooth.
add remaining flour a little at a time. when the mixture becomes too stiff to stir, begin kneading, adding as little flour as possible, just enough to keep the dough from being a sticky mess.
knead until smooth but quite moist, about 10 minutes.
cooking:
bake 6 to 12 minutes depending on oven heat. (preheat the oven to "maximum", though I use 425 'cause I'm cheap)
happy pizza pie, more or less courtesy of Mark Bittman's How To Cook Everything.

Thanks, Andrew for letting us in on the recipe.

I used whole wheat flour and just added about a tablespoon more oil and water. Ours was veggie pizza this time with garlic, onion, tomatoes and mushrooms and fresh shredded mozzarella cheese. Parsley is the greenery on top...just for color.

Collecting Info on Food Miles

From the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service:

"The vast majority of energy used in the U.S. food system (around 80 percent) goes to processing, packaging, transporting, storing, and preparing food.

Produce in the U.S. travels, on average, 1300 - 2000 miles from farm to consumer. Since 1970, truck shipping has dramatically increased, replacing more energy efficient transportation by rail and water.

Local food systems can reduce "food miles" and transportation costs, offering significant energy savings. Consumers also benefit from fresher, better-tasting, and more nutritious food, while more food dollars stay within rural communities."


The Story of Local Lucy and Traveling Tom


You Tube video on Food Miles


Calculating food miles: Using weighted average source distances (WASD)
A Weighted Average Source Distance (WASD) is used to calculate a single distance figure that combines information on the distances from production to point of sale and the amount of food product transported.8 The formula for the WASD is:
S (m(k) x d(k)) WASD = ——————
S m(k) where:
k = different location points of the production
m = weight (amount) from each point of production, and
d = distance from each point of production to each point of use (or sale).

"In Red Chair" series

We're taking a photo on the 21st of each month of Rémy in this little red chair. Here's this month's photo...compare to last month's photo. She is able to hold her head up a little more steadily and can straighten her back. She weighs 10.2 pounds and had her shots on Wednesday. She was not herself for a good 4 days after the shots. Anyone have any information or valuable websites on mercury free vaccinations or not getting so many shots at once? I feel like her body was overwhelmed with 4 shots. It is possible to ask our doctor to do one shot at a time, but we would have to pay the copay each time we go...costing 4 times as much. There seems to be much controversy over giving children shots on a schedule...does it cause Autism? does it cause m.s.? A good friend of the family has a one year old set of twin boys...she feels the shots were fine with one of them, with the other he became non-responsive, has intestinal problems and cannot walk and the mother feels all of these things can be attributed back to getting vaccinated.

There's so many things to consider about the health and welfare of our child that doctors just tell us to do, but that may not necessarily be in the child's best interest. I'm also finding it very difficult to discern the facts.

What's on the Menu for Valentines?

I'm making a special dinner tonight. Yes, I'm one of those sappy sentimentalists who like the occasion of Valentine's Day. While we celebrate our love every day it's just a special reminder to cherish and appreciate the ones you love.

Anyway, usually we go out for Valentine's day, but this year we're staying in and having Shrimp Etouffee. Five and a half years ago this dish won Walker's heart when I made it for him on our first "date". Unfortunately I lost the original recipe and had to look online for something similar.

Shrimp etouffee recipe includes green onions, bell pepper, shrimp celery, tabasco, and rice.

INGREDIENTS:
6 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
1 cup chopped onion
6 green onions and tops, chopped
1/2 cup chopped bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped celery
2 cups water
3 pounds shrimp, peeled,deveined
1/4 cup chopped parsley
salt and pepper, to taste
1 small bay leaf
tabasco sauce, to taste
hot cooked rice

PREPARATION:
In a skillet, melt the butter; add flour, stirring to blend. Cook, stirring constantly, until flour mixture is deep golden brown. Add the vegetables and cook until tender. Stir in the water, shrimp, parsley and seasonings. Simmer, uncovered, for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the shrimp are cooked. Serve over hot rice.
Serves 4 to 6.

Hope it turns out as good as it did then.

For dessert, I would just love to make a dark chocolate ganache and pour it over a hot out of the oven chocolate cake, but Walker has decided not to eat anything with sugar for 40 days. His co-workers at the bank are Catholic and choosing things to give up for Lent, so he decided to just join them. This will help with his commitment to eat healthier, anyway. So for dessert, I got some fresh peaches and blueberries at Sprouts yesterday and I'll probably make some whipped cream and just sweeten it with honey instead of sugar. I'll post pictures of the deliciousness later on.

Banana Experiment

I'm starting an ongoing experiment involving bananas. I guess it's really more of an investigation than an experiment. This may evolve to include more fruits and vegetables but bananas are a good starting place.

Every time I purchase bananas I'm going to keep a log of what brand they are, what is their point of origin (country or state), where they were purchased, how many food miles it is to Frisco, and also plan to take a picture of the condition of the bananas the day I brought them home from the supermarket, farmers market or grocery store. I'm also attempting to keep track of approximately how long they last before we either have to throw them out or use them in banana bread.

Here are two pictures to start the investigation. The first lone banana made it's way into our home when Walker brought it from work on Friday, February 1. Not sure if he acquired it at the deli or from a co-worker who didn't want it at lunch. Either way, it sat uneaten until Wednesday, February 6 when I picked it up and ate it. It was in this condition when I ate it. Unfortunately it had no marker for brand or point of origin.

The second batch I picked up at Walmart yesterday. My choices were Del Monte and UTR both imported from Guatemala. I wanted to take home the UTR because I hadn't heard of them before, but their bananas were more mature and more likely to get black faster and go uneaten, so I opted for Del Monte. The distance from Guatemala to Dallas in a straight line through the Gulf of Mexico is 1319 miles if the bananas were shipped. If they were trucked over here the distance is longer.

Greeting Cards

There's something magical to me about stationery, pretty papers, cards and notes. I'm pretty sure this love comes from my Mom who sends notes and cards for any and every occasion. I'm also pretty sure that her love of writing notes and sending correspondence was passed to her through my Grandmother, who not only loves writing but has a special talent for it.

Having said this, I save any personal correspondence. Whether it be a letter, greeting card, birthday card, thank you note, Christmas card, etc. I have a hat box and a plastic container that I keep them in. It is so interesting to me to go back and read correspondence from years back. I became even more adamant about saving letters when Amy passed away. It's just that even though the person is gone from this earth, their handwriting lives on and their words written on that occasion on which the correspondence was mailed are forever saved, safe in a hatbox or a plastic container.

When Walker and I got married and had such lovely wedding showers and received such lovely congratulatory notes and cards I had to save them. I found a way to not just store them in a box, but utilized their beauty by putting them in our scrapbook. Although the scrapbook turned out great and it's nice to have to look at, scrapbooking takes so much time that I've pretty much given up on it.

Now, when Rémy came along we received more beautiful and lovely congratulatory cards. Right now they are sitting in a little pink shoe box in her closet. There are probably close to 100 cards there that I can't just throw away. Mom saved cards from when I was born and taped them all in my baby book. I remember looking through my baby book and admiring all the cards, some of them from people I didn't know. There's something about reading a card that is for you before you were born. The person doesn't know you, hasn't met you, yet is sending wishes and prayers and hopes for you.

While I am quite the sentimentalist when it comes to saving special items, I've also learned not to let items that aren't used sit around and collect clutter. So, this brings me to my predicament: what can I do with these cards to save them for posterity's sake, but to also put them to use so they're not just taking up space. Oh, and there's not a blank space in her baby book that I can tape them in...plus the quantity of cards would make that difficult.

I remember attending a 25th anniversary party for Sharlette & Jamey a couple of years ago. Jamey scanned the cards into the computer, inside and outside and posted them on his website. That's a great idea because they would be "saved" in a sense....but I'd like for Rémy to be able to actually look at and feel them in the tangible sense.

Do you save any correspondence? What do you do with it?

Our Baby Pictures

I scanned in some baby pictures from when Walker and I were born. We were both born in Dallas, about 6 months apart. Interestingly, the colors in all the pictures are similar...red and yellow must have been big at the time. I just posted a couple here, but there are more on the flickr site.

6 weeks old

For all of you foiled by yesterday's post, here's the real Rémy.

Growing Baby

Our little one has grown so much this week!

Her hair is growing in much faster than we thought it would!

Some days I think it's okay not to get out of your pj's until the mid afternoon or to rock the dog to sleep instead of the baby...keeps things sane around here.

Truffle Learns Doggie Door

For Christmas we got a doggie door, which has changed our lives dramatically. And Truffle's life too for that matter. Life before doggie door consisted of getting out of bed at least once a night to let Truffle out to do her business. We know it was Truffle's intent in doing this to prepare us for parenthood. We also had to keep an eye on the clock any time we were out of the house so we could get back in time to let her outside.

Now, all we have to worry about is finding a pacifier, laundry or hoarded papers out in the backyard! Annie and Walker helped train her to come through the door. It took her a few days to understand that she can not only go out but she can come in too. This video was taken about mid December....a few days before Rémy was born.

Digital Videos

I just uploaded all videos we've ever taken onto our computer including JP & Tracy's wedding and Rémy's birth...also Truffle learning to jump through the doggie door. I have yet to understand how they get onto a blog...but that's my quest for today...to learn how. If all goes well I'll have some videos to share soon.

Coconut Balls

My lovely long lost mother, Fran sends me bags of cooking magazines from time to time. Here's a recipe I'd like to try very soon from Martha Stewart's FOOD magazine...

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup confectioner's sugar, plus more for dusting
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups sweetened flaked coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter with 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar until fluffy. Mix in flour and salt until they're just combined. Stir in coconut.
Roll dough into 1-inch balls; place 2 inches apart on a baking sheet. Bake until just starting to brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Roll the warm cookies in confectioners' sugar; let cool completely. Makes 36.

Smiley Rémy

Yeehaw....it may be a fluke...then again, maybe not. Little Miss has slept 5 nights in a row for 6 or more hours! Last night it was almost 7 hours! We may be onto something here...there are smiles all around our house!

Imagine

http://www.prestontrail.org/podcast/index.htm

This past Sunday's message was perfect for where our life is right now. Walker's business is really starting to pick up and he has one large job that could really get his business moving in the right direction. Jim's message on Sunday was from the first 2 chapters of Nehemiah and talked about imagining what God has in store for your life and the power of answered prayer.

Sleep Solutions

Can you remember back to when your kids were born...what techniques did you use to coax them to sleep?

Right now mama rocks Remy and sings from the hymnal...I know she probably doesn't mind if I sing the same song but it gives me a little variety at least. (right now I'm on pg 33....we'll see how long it takes me to work through the 785 pages.)

Papa prefers to swaddle Remy and make her feel like she is still in the womb and he walks the house back and forth with little bitty baby steps. He also claims that this is a good workout for his upper legs.

I'm halfway through reading a book by Cathryn Tobin entitled Lull-a-Baby. So far it's just talked about what not to do to get your child to sleep and what bad habits can develop by the patterns you use early on. I'm interested to get to the part about what to do to get them to sleep....maybe then we'll all be snoozing.

Here's some tidbits so far:

Myth #1: My baby wakes up because of gas. The most common reason older babies wake up and stay up is that they lack the self-calming tools necessary to manage night awakenings.

Myth #2: My baby wakes up because he's hungry. Like adults, babies eat for reasons other than hunger. A baby will nurse because it's the only way he knows how to get back to sleep.

Myth #3: My baby is a poor sleeper. We inadvertently train our babies to be poor sleepers by not equipping them with the skills they need to fall asleep.

Myth #4: Rice cereal before bedtime will help my baby sleep longer. Hunger is typically not the cause of sleep problems after 3 to 4 months of age.

Myth #5: Crying damages a baby's psyche. I've known babies who were raised on attachment parenting principles and those allowed to cry it out. Can I tell them apart by their intellectual, psychological, or emotional states? Absolutely not!

Myth #6: It's easier to sleep-train an older baby. The longer a habit is reinforced, the harder it is to break.

Myth #7: Teething disrupts sleep. This may be true at times, but teething is blamed for way too many sleep problems.

Myth #8: Poor sleep habits improve eventually. Without their parents' help, the vast majority of babies will sleep worse, not better, over time. Sleep problems don't magically disappear. Consider the 2004 Sleep in America Poll, which found that two-thirds of children from infancy to age 10 experience frequent sleep problems.

Myth #9: Babies will get the sleep they need. If only! Babies resist sleep like similarly charged magnets resist each other. Parents need to insure a baby gets enough sleep.

Myth #10: There's no harm in getting up with my baby as long as I'm willing to do it. If you enable unhealthy sleep habits, you run the risk of your child developing long-standing sleep problems that will persist into the preschool years.

Rémy goes to Church

Here's little Miss Rémy all dressed up and ready to go to church! Of course, she was a little fussy and Walker ended up in the lobby rocking her the whole time, but mama got to enjoy the service!

Eating for Life

by Bill Phillips.

Walker and I eat healthy for the most part, or at least are knowledgable about what is a good food choice and what is not. For a while....maybe a year or longer, we have used the Abs Diet by David Zinczenko- editor of Men's Health magazine- as a guide for our healthy eating habits and for recipes. I came across Eating for Life at work and liked the layout and easy recipes. We've both read through it and will be implementing some of the foods and recipes into our living. It's not just about healthy eating for the short term benefits, but living a healthy lifestyle.

Something my Grandparents did for all of us for Christmas this year was to make a basket of healthy eating items including things like spinach, pomegranate juice, low sodium soups, rice cakes, new toothbrushes, etc. This is a new spin on giving food items for Christmas. Instead of the fruitcake, peanut brittle or fudge it was a refreshing twist and helps us all live up to our goals of living and eating healthy.

Anyway, I would also recommend this book to the cook who likes to have pictures of what is being prepared. It is essential to me that I know what it is supposed to look like before I start attempting to make it. Nice glossy pictures and even pictures of the ingredient list help to make cooking and preparing an easier task.

Books in 2007

I was tagged by Jonathan to list the books I've read in the past year. I'm not always good about writing them down--but from memory here goes...


The Kite Runner-Khaled Hosseini
The Witness-Dee Henderson
The Expectant Father
Lovely Bones-Alice Seibold
All My Road Before Me- CS Lewis
The Secret Life of Bees- Sue Monk Kidd
Steven Cosgrove's Serendipity Books
Nigella Bites-Nigella Lawson
Domestic Goddess-Nigella Lawson
The Art of Raising a Puppy- The Monks of New Skete
Starting with Stories-Pam Schiller
Wicked-Gregory Maguire
1776-David McCullough
Tenth Circle-Jodi Picoult
The Undomestic Goddess-Sophie Kinsella
Positive Dog Training-Idiot's Guide
What to Eat
Zipporah, wife of Moses-Marek Halter
Harry Potter 7- JK Rowling
What to Expect When You're Expecting
Your Pregnancy & Birth
Planning Your Pregnancy & Birth
Miracle in the Making
The Pregnancy Journal
Soothe Your Baby the Natural Way
The Negotiator-Dee Henderson
Feed Your Children Right


I also read 2 books on sleep patterns for babies-but they are at work and I don't remember the titles. Some I'm looking forward to reading include: East to Eden by Steinbeck, I'd like to find a book on swimming with babies, training dogs for children, more on water supply and water contamination, I read one on pureeing food for your baby instead of buying baby food and want to read another and gather recipes for that.

Here she is!

Rémy Noel Plagge

December 21, 2007

7 lb 10 oz

Tomorrow's the Big Day

We're inducing tomorrow at 7:00 am. More to come later....

Walking the Malls

I wonder how many malls I'll walk before Remy is born...

For the past 3 days I've walked the Stonebriar mall for about half of the day. Annie went with me yesterday and Walker the two days before. Walker's brother, Brandon is in town with his wife April and son Braedon and we all went to Northpark last night to see the trains.

I think this afternoon the day is nice enough that we can put Truffle on her leash and walk through the neighborhood.

Saturday I had very consistent contractions (between 3-5 minutes for about 4 or 5 hours) and called the doctor who instructed me to come to the hospital. They put me in a room, strapped monitors on my belly and watched me for an hour or more. I am having real and consistent contractions, they just aren't intense enough to cause her to make any progress...and I am dilated a little more. The nurse said come back when I can't talk. She also said my official due date was the 16th...so she's full term and now overdue. I'm kind of glad they didn't tell me the 16th in the beginning because I'm not sure if I would have taken school this semester.

For now I'm enjoying all the window shopping, Christmas music, time off from work and visiting with family and friends. I appreciate all the calls and emails and messages from all of you. It's so nice to know how loved we are by our friends and family...we can't wait to call you all very soon with good news.

Gage's Surgery

Another email from Elaine about Gage's status:


Hello Family and Friends-Thank you all for your prayers and phone calls concerning Gage. I apologize for not calling many of you back but am a bit overwhelmed and hope that you know how much I appreciate your concern. I wanted to let all of you know that Gage's surgery, removal of his entire colon (they call it J-Pouch), went well according to the doctors. He has suffered a tremendous amount of pain. He is also having some complications with recovery and has been throwing up the past two nights- which is VERY painful since his entire abdomen area was operated on. Please, please continue to pray for him and his healing. Pray for the doctors, nurses, and our entire family. We have spent most days with the family at the hospital but have also had car trouble (Guy's car), I have finals, and I now have a yucky sinus infection so please pray the Lord's protection and provision for all of us as we hope for this to be a wonderful transformation for Gage's health and life. He is at Presbyterian Hospital of Dallas. Thank you again for the prayers and concerns and for those of you that have called, I will try to get back with you once finals are finished (the 21st). Love all of you!

In Him,

Elaine

Let me out!

This isn't me, and I know it's probably photoshopped, but I couldn't resist posting it.

Gage's Surgery

Gage had the J-pouch surgery yesterday which removed his colon. They started at about 4:30 yesterday and it took about 5 hours. It was successful, but today he is in a great deal of pain. He is expected to be in the hospital another week or so before he can go home. He'll spend 6 more weeks recovering at home and then it will take about a year for his body to fully adjust. Please pray for his speedy recovery.

9 more to go!

Well, I guess we'd better get our naps in while we can. The doctor appointment today revealed that I'm fully effaced and 1 cm dilated. Just 9 cm keeping Remy from this world. They said if I want her real soon to go and walk around the mall and if I want to wait then just go home and put my feet up.

For today I'm putting my feet up, making some hot chocolate, turning up the heater and cracking open my Geology and Math books for the last time before tomorrow's finals. Maybe Friday we'll hit the mall and start the walking!

Button Memorial UMC

in Little Elm will host their annual Live Nativity Journey with 45 actors, llamas, horses, cows, goats and about 1500 people who participate in the reenacting of the journey to Jerusalem for the census to be taken. The Nativity Journey begins at the Methodist church and participants make about 20 stops along the way meeting shepherds, a marketplace, Roman soldiers, an innkeeper, etc. This year it is on December 15th & 16th from 6:30 to 9:30. I think if I haven't delivered yet Walker and I are going to try and make it to this. It sounds like a unique spin on the live nativity idea.

More information about the event and the church can be found at

http://www.livenativity.org/

Update on Gage

Another message from Elaine last night. Please continue to keep him in your prayers:

As many of you know, Guy's brother, Gage, has been ill with ulcerative colitis for about five years. The past five months, he has not been able to leave the house at all and has been very weak and ill. Last week he and his doctors decided they are going to go ahead and remove his colon on December 11th. In the meantime, he became violently ill yesterday following a colonoscopy and is therefore in the hospital for the next week prior to his surgery and will then be in the hospital for the week following surgery, as it is a major procedure. Since he is so weak right now, they want to try to get him well before they do surgery. Please pray for him and our family as we are trusting that the Lord is going to heal him physically and allow him to begin to live life again. Thank you all for your prayers!

In Him,

Guy and Elaine

Last pictures

Here are the last pictures we'll see of baby Remy in the womb...next time we'll have real live pictures. She was sucking her thumb the entire 10-15 minutes of the sonogram. We couldn't get a clear picture of just her face, but she's gained a lot of good fatty deposits and it looks like she's going to be quite attached to that thumb of hers!

At the weekly visit today I had effaced quite a bit more but still no dilation. I was sick 2 days last week and couldn't keep anything down...so I had lost a couple of pounds, but they weren't concerned. Blood pressure was good, her heart rate was normal. And actually when they were using the fetal heart monitor to check her heart rate she kept kicking the probe!

Monday night I had contractions about every hour-keeping me up all night. Dr. says that when they are every 5 minutes for 2 hours straight, that's when to come to the hospital.

We picked out a pediatrician and signed up for the cord blood banking, we've packed our bags and put them in the car, checked most things off our 'to do' list...in our minds we're ready to embark on this new challenge called parenthood.

I go on maternity leave as of Tuesday the 11th and my last day of school is the 13th, which is also Walker's last day of work before his 'paternity' leave. Now we've started counting down the days until our big, little Christmas gift arrives!

Countdown

16 days until baby is due
3 more days of work
1 week left of school
1 biology project due
5 final exams (1 tomorrow, 1 friday, 3 next week)
1 Christmas party
2 gatherings with friends
1001 licks from Truffle

let's just get through the next 2 weeks.

Gage Charles

Many of you know Gage Charles(above singing at Guy & Elaine's wedding), Guy's brother. Gage sang at our wedding and has been battling ulcerative colitis for many years...George battles with this same ailment. I just got an email from Elaine and thought I'd share it:

Dear Friends and Family,My brother-in-law, Gage, has suffered from ulcerative colitis for the past 4+ years and has recently had a severe bout with it for the past 6+ months. Due to the severe pain and discomfort and him trying every possible healing agent prior to surgery, he has decided to get surgery. He will be getting the J-pouch surgery on December 11th in Dallas. While the surgery is pretty major and he will be in the hospital for about a week, I pray that this is the beginning to a new way of living for him. He is only 22 and has not been able to leave the house in months. Please join us and pray for him going into surgery, for a successful surgery, for quick healing time, and any other needs that are placed on your heart. Gage is such a wonderful man and we believe that the Lord has wonderful plans for his life and hope that this is a big step to help him achieve all the great things God has in store for him. Thank you and hope all is well.

In Him,Elaine

Baby news

At my weekly doctor appointment yesterday they said I've started to efface but no dilation yet. She is about 6.5 lbs right now with 3 weeks to go. I've started receiving guesses as to when she'll be born and how much she'll weight. Here's the guesses so far:

Nana Dorsey December 29 weighing 7 lb 4 oz
Grammy Plagge December 15 weighing 6 lb 6 oz
Kelly Butler December 17 weighing 7 lb 2 oz
Walker Plagge December 18 weighing 7 lb 14 oz

Feel free to add your own guess to the mix.

Amelie Gabrielle Dorsey

born November 19, 2007 at 2:20 am. She was delivered by c-section and weighs in at 5.13 lb. 18.5 inches. Congratulations to happy parents John Paul and Tracy!

I'll have some pictures soon.

Update: Please remember Tracy in your prayers...she went into kidney failure, has been throwing up all night and into the day today. She is stable now but she may have to stay a little longer in the hospital.

3rd Wedding Anniversary

Today marks three years since Walker and I committed our lives to each other. Unfortunately I haven't uploaded all our wedding photos to the computer yet, but it's on my project list. Here's one to mark the occasion.

We're getting up early and going to breakfast at The Original Pancake House in Plano before I head off to Denton for class and Walker heads to McKinney for a dental appointment and then heads to work.

What's in my water?

In a couple of classes drinking water contamination has been mentioned and it sparked my interest in exactly what I'm drinking in when I take a drink from the faucet.

The comments made in class were to the effect that the Denton County water supply contains trace amounts of prozac and birth control pills with every sip. There are many other prescription meds found in trace amounts...these two are just the most prominent. And we wonder why great quantities of fish are being found androgynous or male with female parts.

After researching this a bit I've found that it's a national problem, not just in Denton county. Due to the hyper-prescribing of certain medications as a community we are collectively polluting the water.

I found some useful information at the EPA's website



I also found the Frisco Water report published in August, which had a 'superior' quality rating, but the traces of things in the water still grosses me out. I don't want to resort to buying bottled water all the time...for several reasons:

1. the plastic container contains chemicals that can leach into the water
2. the cost in oil of shipping the bottled water to the store is about 1/5 the cost of the water...so to save oil/ promote an ecofriendly environment it's more considerate to drink tap water.
3. I have a Pur filter system...I just wonder what it filters and I have a feeling it doesn't filter my neighbor's prescription drugs.
4. Some bottled water companies have been found just bottling tap water.

Another concern is this: if farmers are using this same water to irrigate plants for food, are the trace amounts of these drugs absorbed into the plant systems therefore being reintroduced to our systems when we eat them?

There...now I can go back to sleep. I've been up thinking about this and it's interrupted my sleep for two days. For now the best I can do is drink tap water using my Pur filter, until I find a better solution.

Pregnancy Books

I've read quite a few including What to Expect When You're Expecting, Your Pregnancy & Birth, Planning Your Pregnancy & Birth, Miracle in the Making, The Expectant Father, The Pregnancy Journal, Soothe Your Baby the Natural Way and a few others that I read and put back on the shelf (on my lunch breaks).

While comprehensively they contain loads of information, it's essentially all the same. The only one that I've read, liked and would highly recommend is The Pregnancy Journal. The name is deceiving, because it's not a journal in the sense we think of a journal. It is a day by day account of what's going on with your body, what's going on with baby's body, what you should be thinking about, what kind of growth you should expect and even gives insight into cultures around the world telling what other countries and tribes do at certain times. The one that came most highly recommended to me was What to Expect When You're Expecting. By the volume of this book that gets sold back to us at Half Price Books I'm sure every pregnant woman in America has owned or will own this one. I was disappointed and left feeling anxious and worried every time I read through the month by month chapter breakdown. It seems to focus more on the possibilities that CAN happen to you and your baby listing problems, don't's abnormalities, pains, defects, etc. While all of this can be very helpful at times, especially if you are facing one of those issues, I found it to be disheartening and found The Pregnancy Journal, by contrast to focus more on development and growth.

Stem Cell Research and Cord Blood Banking

We were given the option of banking our baby's cord blood privately ($$$$) and then found that it can be banked publicly in Texas at no charge. It's nice to know there's another way to get stem cells than from the undifferentiated cells of aborted fetuses. In the continuing debate of stem cell research funding this one's a no brainer for me and it seems like more of our efforts should be focused on spreading the word about getting stem cells from cord blood than fighting the issue of using aborted fetuses undifferentiated cells, which just seems to be stalling research and funding.


From the Texas Cord Blood Bank Website:


What is cord blood?
Cord blood is the blood that remains in the placenta after a baby is born. Cord blood has been found to be a rich source of stem cells and is currently being used as an alternative to bone marrow in treating a number of life-threatening diseases. Because these cells are normally discarded after birth, this is the ultimate recycling project.

Why do we need the Texas Cord Blood Bank?
Sadly, this potentially life-saving option is not available to everyone due to the high costs associated with the testing, processing and storage of umbilical cord blood cells. The Texas Cord Blood Bank (TCBB) allows families the opportunity to donate their infant’s cord blood, regardless of socioeconomic status, to ensure that all patients needing a bone marrow/stem cell transplant are offered this opportunity.

More than 70% of children and adults requiring a bone marrow transplant do not have an immune matched sibling who could be a donor. In their case, the only option is to find an unrelated donor through the national bone marrow and cord blood registries. Because immune types are specific to ethnic groups, it is important to collect cord blood units from donors of all backgrounds especially Hispanics, African Americans and Native Americans.

Benefits of cord blood:

There is no risk to the donor.
Since cord blood immune cells are less mature, they are more easily accepted by the patient when used in transplantation. As a result, patients with a less than perfect immune match can now be treated
There are fewer immune complications after transplantation.
Since cord blood is banked and ready to use, it is immediately available when a patient needs it.
Some of the diseases currently treated with cord blood:

Leukemia & other blood cancers
Aplastic anemia
Lymphoma
Deficiencies of the immune system
Genetic disorders such as sickle cell anemia
Goals of the Texas Cord Blood Bank:

To build a cord blood bank that captures the rich ethnic diversity of Texas
To develop a program that results in the highest quality units that exceed national and international standards.

How you can make a difference:
There are few public unrelated banks in the United States, each represents an ethnic mix unique to their geographic area. If you would like to make a contribution to the program, please send your donation to the Texas Cord Blood Bank, c/o South Texas Blood & Tissue Center.

Facts about the Texas Cord Blood Bank
Specially approved by the Texas legislature and unique in the state, the Texas Cord Blood Bank - managed by South Texas Blood and Tissue Center - is a source of ethnically diverse, life-saving umbilical cord blood.

Cord blood, donated following the birth of a healthy baby, is rich in blood-making cells which can be used, like bone marrow transplants, to treat children and adults with certain cancers and otherwise fatal blood disorders.

6,000 units of cord blood must be collected to make the program self-sustaining - and that effort will require philanthropic support in order to match a $3.5 million state grant.

Who benefits from your donation?
Zachary is a bright, sunny three-year-old boy with alabaster hair and twinkling blue eyes. For the first eight months of his life, Zachary’s therapy and illness required many transfusions of platelets and whole blood to keep his fragile body going. Shannon and her husband, Matthew, tried to keep a positive attitude, supported by loving friends and family and a dedicated team of physicians.

After eight months of treatments, doctors said the agonizing treatments had not worked; he would need a stem cell transplant. In January 2002, he received his lifesaving transplant, thanks to a mother who donated the cord blood from her own child’s birth. “We were so scared, and we are so thankful,” Shannon says. “Because some mother selflessly donated a little bag of cells, my son is alive and well. She saved my son’s life, and I’ll never take anything for granted again.”

Before the transplant, every day was a fearful vigil at a sick child’s bedside. Today, Shannon says, “the worst things we deal with are colds and sniffles. He’s very healthy now.”

Math Midterm

Just aced a math midterm that I fretted over for days, but didn't actually study for until this morning and skipped 2 classes to cram for it. Here's what I had to know: formulas for the probability of an event, mutually exclusive events, conditional probability, properties of probability, tree diagrams, odds in favor and odds against an event, expected value vs. theoretical value, permutations and combinations, quartiles and the formula for Interquartile Range (IQR), pie charts, variance and formula for standard deviation, how to read a normal curve, properties of points, lines and planes, formula for the sum of the measures of the interior angles of a convex polygon with 'n' sides, definition of a regular polyhedra, formula for the measure of a single interior angle of a regular n-gon.

This is a class consisting of 40-45 lower elementary education majors (grades K-4). Now, I love math and before I decided what to do with my life have taken loads of credits worth of upper math-major level math classes including Trig, Cal I and Cal II at the college level and I can understand the relevance of needing to know those upper level maths if you are going to be an engineer or scientist or if you want to know you're doing your taxes correctly. I fail to see the relevance of having future teachers learn concepts and formulas which they will not be using in their own classrooms because they are not grade level appropriate. Mind you the name of the class is Math for Elementary Education. This is the second semester of this class. The first semester was more about how to teach math concepts, exploring different methods of teaching math, as well as ensuring we are competent enough in those concepts to teach them. Even if we were planning to teach at the age level that this class is directed toward (maybe 6th grade or middle school) I would still expect to be taught methods of teaching this to students-just by the name of the class. Hmph. And we wonder why teachers are lacking in science and math instruction.

October Birthday Celebration at Martinez'

Last night the Shepherd/ Dorsey/ Plagge clan met for dinner in Mesquite at Martinez' Restaurant. The family owned restaurant recently opened their own stand alone facility in the same parking lot as the old building they used to rent. I've only eaten there for graduation banquets in the past and had always been served buffet style, so this was a new experience to be able to choose what I was going to have from their menu. It's authentic Mexican food, not the tex-mex we're used to and it was fabulous. Walker and I shared the Mexican plate which had a beef taco, tamale, cheese enchilada, rice and beans. Walker made the rounds last night also sharing the beef fajitas with Annie and then collecting leftovers from Tony and Aunt Elizabeth, managing to clear all of our plates. George ventured out and ordered eggs and pork chops with rice and beans. Mom ordered chicken enchiladas and Grandpa got chicken fajitas. The hot sauce was excellent and proved to be hotter than most, a definite plus from my end. Amidst good conversations and smiles and laughter we topped the evening off with sopapillas drenched in honey. Tony and Annie spotted what they call a 'quarter machine' on the way out and lost their life savings worth of quarters trying to win more quarters. I do think they won a couple of times, but I'm pretty sure they put in more than they got out.

The Negotiator

by Dee Henderson.

I bought a 6 book series of Dee Henderson books, so I hope I like the first one. I had trouble getting started on it, but I think that has more to do with my recent obsession with reading pregnancy and parenting books than the storyline being dull.

Party Punch

Served this at a wedding shower recently. I came up with it myself, using the basic idea of a sangria. Everyone loved it, so I'm sure I'll use it again.

2 2 liters of ginger ale
2 bottles of chardonnay
2 bottles of peach champagne
1 pkg of frozen peach slices
1 pkg frozen mango pieces
1 cut up orange
1 cut up lemon

Baby Day!

Today we're trying again to get a good clear picture using the 3-d sonogram. Hopefully I'll be able to give a full report and post some pictures this afternoon. Also, Penny and Curtis Haskins find out today what the sex of their baby is! They are due in February...can't wait to hear the news!

Things to Accomplish Today

Clean out garage
Laundry
Grocery shopping
- Paper towels
- Doggie treats
- Chewies
- Soy milk
- Sunday lunch stuff
Swim laps
Change air filter
Go to Lowe’s
- Ask about paint
-2 more planks of chair rail
- espresso paint from Kelly
- paintbrushes
- blue tape
- finest grade sandpaper
Try to start lawn mower
Do assignment for EDSP/due Friday
Finish Math h/w
Call Mazda to set up appointment
Call Kelly about Tony’s flowers
Host/ess gift for Guy & Elaine
Hang curtain in bathroom
Make enchiladas for dinner

5 month Appointment

Wednesday's Dr. appointment proved successful. At the last minute Lisa called us and wanted to go ahead and try the 3-d sonogram and thankfully Walker was able to take off work and come to the appointment to see. Baby girl weighs 1.67 pounds so she's still on the slim side for having a 3-d sono. Usually they like to have more fatty deposits on the baby before trying. Another stipulation of a successful 3-d is having enough amniotic fluid between the baby's face and the placenta wall. There was a small amount, but not enough space to give a clear 3-d picture. In the end the sonographer decided to try again in 5 weeks (which is the optimum time for getting a clear picture). Walker's Aunt Lisa (who works in that office) decided that baby girl definitely does not have Walker's thighs and the sonographer decided that she has my nose. The nurse took my blood pressure and measurements and said that I am progressing normally. I've gained about 15 pounds in all (5 pounds since the last visit) so this puts me in the normal weight gain category and I'm very happy about that.

We've attended prenatal classes and Walker went to "Daddy Boot Camp" put on by the hospital. We got to tour the hospital and see the rooms and nursery, learned infant CPR and heimlich, how to change diapers and give baths with the umbilical cord still attached, we watched video's chronicling what happens as labor progresses and teaching how to breastfeed. This weekend our parents are coming over to help paint & put her room together. Our neighbor across the street gave us a crib and mom is giving us an antique dresser that we'll use as a dresser/changing table. We're going to paint them an esspresso color brown so they'll match. We're also installing chair rail around the room and painting it to match the baseboards as well as painting the room a color called shell flower. All these preparations for a little person we haven't yet met!

Walker commented yesterday that when other couple's have told us they are expecting it seems like just a few days pass and then they have their baby...but with us it seems like it's been two years since we found out! It's like waiting to open a Christmas present only instead of waiting for the month of December to pass, you have to wait 3/4 of a year before you open the gift!

School Starts

Whew. It's good to be back.

After two weeks in school, one crazy and frenzied, the other enjoyable and familiar here I am at the third week already having to miss a day of school. It's a bummer to have to miss class for several reasons: I like school and learning, I miss the instruction when I'm not there, and usually professors offer incentives for those who don't miss class. I have a feeling I'll be missing a lot of classes this semester for unforseen reasons, I just hope my grades and gpa won't have to suffer. Plus laying at home in bed for the past day and a half gets to be very boring, I just hope I'm feeling better by Thursday's classes.

I'm taking Math II (teaching math to elementary schoolers), Biol (again teaching biology to elementary schoolers), Geography, and a class for learning to teach exceptional learners. Both the geography and biology have labs and take up quite a bit of time. Exceptional learners is online and I feel this one will be most neglected because I keep telling myself "oh I'll just do the work for that one in my free time" (yeah right) So I'm sitting on 14 hours for the semester and still working and loving every bit of it.

One great thing about the start of this semester is my new set of dependable wheels! I am now the proud owner of a Mazda Tribute! Fully loaded and with a sunroof! I just love it and I love being 6 months pregnant and not having to worry about my car breaking down on the way to or from Denton. (I had at least 3 incidents last semester-all in the flooding). Walker loves the new wheels too and now instead of debating who HAS to drive it's a fight for who grabs the keys first and GETS to drive!